What is your medicine

[Calum]

So we had a visit from our regional beekeeping advisor from the state.
I asked him if treating varroa with sugar powder helps. He tried not to laugh, and said studies show continiously that the bees clean themselves but do not kill any varroa they may remove. so unless you are catching them and killing them as they fall the effect is almost nil.

I have never tried it out myself. My Varroa management regime is :
removal of all capped drone brood (I supply empty frames specially for this).
60% formic acid 2ml per frame applied from above every 5-7 days in july/august 6-7 repatitions
oxalic acid sugar water in Dec. 30-50ml per colony.

So what do you do?
What verified research results do you know of that prove or disprove a treatment method?

[Neils]

Isn't that the point of the Open Mesh Floor?

I do use icing sugar but to be perfectly honest have absolutely no idea with regards to it's efficacy.

At the moment I rely on Apiguard, drone brood uncapping to monitor mite levels, drone culling possibly as a result (while trying to balance the need to have drones) and icing sugar.

Across three colonies I'm not seeing obvious signs of varroa related problems at the current time, if the situation deteriorates then I might consider stepping up the level of treatment I apply.

[Jon]

Hi Calum.

This research suggests that sugar dusting is a waste of time. I would tend to agree.

http://www.ibra.org.uk/articles/20090217_5

I check drone brood and cull if necessary but usually don't have to.
I use Apiguard (Thymol) in September and Oxalic acid trickle in late December.

I never seem to see significant numbers of mites until late summer.
I think the Oxalic could be important as it means the mite level starts very low in Spring and takes months to build up to a worrying level.

[Trog]

I've just started to use an open mesh floor on one colony, mostly to help me spot varroa if it arrives (along with checking the odd bit of drone brood during inspections). I'm dismayed by the amount of pollen, especially the larger loads, dropping through. Seems a huge waste of the bees' efforts. Mind you, it's certainly reducing the braula population - was crawling with them after only a week!

[drumgerry]

Calum - I'd be really interested to hear more about your July/August regime with Formic acid.

Like a detailed description of what you do and what equipment you use? If you wouldn't mind of course! I'm very interested in using Formic acid as my main late Summer/Autumn treatment. By the time the heather has finished here we don't always have the temperatures to use Apiguard at its most effective. I know that Formic acid is also temperature sensitive but if it can be used before the heather or while there are honey supers on it might fit my circumstances very well.

Cheers

Gerry

[Calum]

Ok ... I will try my best to explain.
the method I use is an application of Formic acid applied above or below the frames to a foam cloth (like you use for washing the dishes (http://www.schwammtuch.de/Bilder/schwammtuch.jpg)).
I use 60% formic acid (medical grade) that we can order from beekeeper clubs (its subsidised by the state).
I usually do the first treatment from below and following ones from above.

I treat from below 3ml per frame and from above 2ml per frame. I dampen the cloth to make it easier for it to soak up the acid. After wringing it out well I apply the measured amount and then place the cloth either under the mesh floor, or under the plastic foil in the upperost brood magazine. When I apply from above I lay the cloth on a very fine plastic mesh so the bees do not come into direct contact with it. Also use plenty of smoke to drive the bees down so that they dont get errant drops on them and that the queen is well away from the first 'shock' of the smell. Also it is best done in the early evening so most of the bees are there (recommended). I guess the smell puts returning bees off going home.
I repeat this every 5-7 days. 4-5 cycles are the minimum (too get all bees treated including all sealed brood). I go for 6-7 treatments as it is Murphys law that one will go wrong (too cool/damp/breezy).
The temperature should be between 15 and 30°C for the treatment.
I would say this is the most used treatment method in Germany. It is also recommended by the German Austrian Dutch and Swiss bee institutes as a verified method of varroa control.
Other methods using formic acid are medicine bottle method (formic acid drips continiously onto a cloth - needs a super, slow drips over 2-3 weeks I think) and the Nassenheider despenser (http://www.silkes-imkereibedarf.de/resources/_wsb_279x209_103_0392.JPG) that is like an oil lamp built into a frame that slowly lets the acid evaporate over a couple of weeks.
I prefer the cloth method it does give the bees a shock but the treatment is over in a day, requires less equipment, is cheaper, uses less acid (than medicine and nassenheider). 60% does not damage brood too much.
Yes it does kill some bees. But if my finger is gangrious I would rather cut it off than loose my life.
With a vets permission 85% can be used but that is only in case of infestation. That stuff really does damage brood.

There is a 23 page document about combined varroa control methods (including application instructions) from the state here which makes life easier (but it is in german (http://www.adiz-online.de/online/102422/varroa.pdf)).
If I were not so lazy I would get around to translating that.
I'm trying hard not to be so lazy so I may try a bit at a time. Though I really think the BBA should have a serious publication about varroa control - their article Celle Rotation on their site has holes in it and is not widely used in Germany due to the difficulty and high chance or reinvasion.. The SBA website is not much better. Varroa is the biggest problem there is. Anemic bees with parasites hanging off them are much more prone too all other diseases/infections. And I could not find any really informative information or recommendations on either website.
I hope you understood the method at least.

[drumgerry]

Many thanks for that Calum. I think I'm going to follow your method and see what transpires.

Gerry

[Calum]

Hi Gerry,
I will apply myself to translating the official German handbook about this method. And posting it on this site.

They recommend that chemical treatments only ever be used after the last honey for the year has been harvested. The frame wood soaks up a fair amount and releases it slowly. - You do not want it getting in the honey.

[Calum]

Hi
the first part of the translation of the varroa control booklet regarding folic acid:

Folic Acid Advantages:
Treats unhatched brood ( important for the protection of winter bees)
Occurs naturally in honey (in small amounts)
Chance that Varroa will become resistant is very small
No residues in wax or honey when used correctly
Notices:
- 60% Folic acid (ad us.vet.) is allowed as a treatment with vacuum evaporators (Nassenheider or medicine bottle) since 2000 (in Germany)
- may be bought from an chemist without prescription
Documentation of use is not demanded
Use evaporation with foam sheet has been proven as effective. This method as with the use of 85% folic acid is not recognised as a animal medication/ treatment (in Germany)
This applies also to treatments of 85% Folic acid with vacuum evaporators
for all applications keep the front of the hive completely open and the open mesh floor closed.
Safety:
Buy ready to use solutions
It is imperative to wear gloves
Protective glasses are recommended
Always have water ready (a bucket and a spray bottle)
Wash and rinse immediately acid drops or spay
Keep away from children

[drumgerry]

Ahhh darn it! Back to square one I'm afraid. The problem here is that the heather here can run into September. And by the time it's off the hives there's no guarantee of the correct treatment temperatures. But there's the same problem with Apiguard. And I know there's pyrethroid resistant mites not a huge distance south of me. So I guess it's Apiguard or Formic acid and hope that the temperatures are ok. Perhaps with Formic acid being a relatively high number of treatments I have a better chance of a weather window when it will work at its best.

In any case many thanks for the translation Calum - a great service to us all.

Gerry

[Calum]

Why?
Easy fast application
Can be used in almost every hive type

When?
Nucs just before the capping of the first brood
After the last harvest in the year (outdoor temp above 12°C)
When the outdoor temperature is above 25°C application recommended in the late afternoon
On days where cool nights are expected treat in the morning

With what
Foam cloth about 20x20x0,5 cm
Cooled (in fridge) 60% folic acid ad us. Vet. (cooling slows the evaporation rate)
Dosing Instrument syringe or measurement beaker

How?
Generally
Place the foam cloth as close as possible to the bees (above/below)
3-4 treatments with 4-7 days between each one (6-7 if if the temperatures dropped making the treatment ineffective)
Treatment from above – place foam cloth directly on the frame tops use 2ml per Deutsch normal mass (394*223mm) / Zander (447*220mm) frame
Treatment from below – laxy cloth on the diagnosis board or under mesh. Single magazines 4ml per DNM/Zander frame, or 3ml for hives consisting of more than one magazine-

Warnimg:
Not recognised as medicine for amimals (in Germany)
The queen can be killed

My notes – wet the cloth and wring it well out – otherwise if it is too dry the acid will not be soaked up and can run off. Use a fine mesh or gauze so the bees cannot come into contact with the cloth. I do my first treatment from below and the rest from above (the first to get the bees used to it)